Commander David Scott and Lunar Module Pilot James Irwin training with the Hasselblads (Image: NASA)

A Hasselblad Data Camera with telescopic lens (Image: NASA)

The Hasselblad has been in the hands of a private collector (Image: NASA/Westlicht)

Starting bid for the Hasselblad is €80,000 (US$108,000) (Image: NASA/Westlicht)

The Hasselblad Data Camera from Apollo 15 is the only one to make the return trip to Earth (Image: Westlicht)

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Article Summary

Sometimes history is preserved by accident rather than design. Thanks to a malfunction during the Apollo 15 mission in 1971 that prevented it from being abandoned with its fellows, the only camera used on the surface of the Moon and brought back to Earth will be auctioned by Westlicht Photographica Auction in Vienna. The motor-driven camera is a Hasselblad 500 "EL DATA CAMERA HEDC," also known as a Hasselblad Data Camera (HDC), that was specially designed for use on the Moon. It’s currently in the hands of a private collector and goes on the block in March.